Website Launch
Dear campus community,
As promised in the last campus email, I’m writing to share some exciting details about the launch of the redesigned university website. We plan to launch the new site between Feb. 25-28.
Key Improvements
When the new site is launched, you will notice that some familiar menus and links may no longer be in their usual spot. As we mentioned in a previous email, the “Mega Menu” at the top of each page has been updated and reorganized and now includes the main navigation headings of Academics, Admissions and Aid, Student Experience, Research, and Community Impact. You can see more screenshots of the new global navigation here.
Additionally, the Quick Links had become a place that listed numerous links for multiple audiences. To better serve these audiences and provide them with important information, two new sites were created: one for Current Students and one for Faculty and Staff. These two sites are linked at the top of every single page for easy access (along with a link to the University Directory).
The Current Students site and the Faculty and Staff site list the key links and resources that those audiences frequently access, such as the academic calendar, email, Blackboard, and more. I encourage you to bookmark these sites, as they will be updated with important information and resources just for you.
Lastly, for those key links that are accessed by multiple audiences like our alumni and community, you can find those links listed in the global footer on every single page.
One additional improvement you will not actually see is that the new site was built on a cloud-hosted server, which will bring security safeguards, greater data storage capacity, and other technical benefits.
Training
After the new site launches, we will begin rolling out editing access to sites. We will implement new custom editing roles and permissions that will better meet the needs of our site editors.
Site editors will be contacted and invited to a required training session. These training sessions will be offered throughout the year.
Moving Forward
The first campus email about the redesign was sent May 2022 after the project officially started the year prior. We are excited to finally launch the new site and have our students, faculty, staff, and community benefit from an improved web experience.
A website is a living tool and now that the site has been completely updated, we will be able to make more efficient and gradual adjustments as needed. The improvements never end, but we are now in a better position to continue evolving ualr.edu.
We are incredibly thankful for the support and collaboration we have received as we worked to build the new site.
Go Trojans!
Meaghan